Loving Right
by averagemuggle
Summary: When a required visit to the Volturri leads to the discovery of a severly damaged slave-girl, the Cullen family can't help but rescue her from her captors. But they're about to learn that while rescues are easy, healing a broken soul takes work. ExB


The family always dreaded this part of the decade, when the Volturi 'invited' them to Italy for a weekend. The Cullens knew this was just the Volturi's way of keeping tabs on the more peculiar of covens, such as them. But Alice had seemed strangely anxious about this visit. She had packed even more clothes than normal, and much of it seemed to be more practical than fashionable. When Jasper had asked Alice had simply shrugged and said, "I have a feeling we're going to need it."

They had been in the castle for a day, and had one more day to go. They'd been greeted by an overjoyed Aro, before they were led to their rooms, and Edward had to shake off the disturbing offers of lending him one of their human slaves for the night. After getting settled in, the family spent much of the day stomaching conversation with their vulgar royalty. But when dinner had innocently walked in, Edward, Alice, and Jasper had all fled. Unable to deal with the visions or thoughts or feelings of the poor victims that were to be the Volturi's dinner. The rest of the Cullens quickly followed suit and locked themselves in their rooms, finding comfort within the arms of their other halves. All except Edward, who leaned back in his corner and tried to ignore the screams, but soon found there was no escape from this torture in the confines of his room.

He tore his door open and began running through the dark hallways, trying to distance himself from the screams. And while the screams did grow quieter, the hallways only got darker and darker. Hopelessness seemed to wreak off the dank walls. Edward paused and leaned against the wall. He couldn't hear the screaming anymore. He couldn't hear any minds penetrating his own. And he revelled in the eerie peace of the sensation. He listened to the dripping of moisture falling from the ceiling to the ground, he heard insects' wings flapping, and the weak sound of a heartbeat coming from another room.

It took Edward a moment to realize that was impossible. If he was close enough to a human to hear their heartbeat, he was close enough to hear their thoughts. Curious, he began following the sound. He walked deeper into the darkening hallways, which were turning into cold tunnels. And as the heartbeat grew louder Edward noticed, without surprise in such a cold place, the heartbeat would not grow any stronger. By the time he finally approached the door from which he could clearly tell was where the heartbeat was, his spacious mind was packed with a mountain of questions and the intention to immediately figure out the answers.

But when he opened the door, every thought he had in his head fell away.

In that moment, he only knew one thing.

Her.

To Edward, she was so beautiful his heart almost started beating again.

She looked so fragile that he could feel his heart break.

In the corner of the tiny cell, the girl was a limp pile of flesh and bones, and little else. Not a scrap of clothing covered her body, giving Edward's supernatural eyes a perfect view of the outline of every single one of her ribs, all the fading bruises and welts covering her blue skin. Bony hands rested beside her face. Her sallow skin was pulled taut against her tiny cheekbones, showing off a serene expression that would be expected to be found on a dying old woman. Not a young girl.

He was pulled to her. He moved towards her slowly, terrified that even disturbing the air too much might break her. He knelt down next to her tired, tired face. Her eyelids lifted a small bit, and Edward saw a beautiful shade of brown before they dropped closed again.

He needed to save her. He needed to get her away from this place. Desperate, he ripped off his shirt, tore it down the middle and gently wrapped it around her shoulders. It covered so much of her for such a small piece of fabric. He eased his hands beneath her body and slowly lifted her. She was so small, lighter than a feather, and colder than him. If not for that tiny heartbeat in her chest, the only thing Edward could hear anymore, he wouldn't have believed the girl to be alive.

Edward pulled her closer to his body, and wrapped his arms around her securely. All he wanted to do was hold her as tight as he possibly could, but she looked so fragile, so close to death. Edward rushed through the tunnel, the hallways, into his room. He breathed a sigh of relief at the fact he'd decided to keep the fireplace going. He threw the sheets back on the unmade bed and placed the girl upon the mattress, covering her with blankets. He dragged the bed right next to the fireplace, and immediately began feeding it. He rummaged frantically through his suitcase, whatever he couldn't add to the pile of blankets, he threw into the fire until even the suitcase was being licked by the flames.

Edward looked back at the girl, her lips were no longer blue, but they weren't red either. She needed food, but Edward knew he wouldn't be able to tear himself away from her to search for any. And it was these moments that made him happy beyond belief to have a psychic sister. For this was the moment Alice chose to burst through the door with Carlisle in tow.

"I'm so sorry couldn't see this sooner! I knew we'd need the medicine this weekend but I couldn't tell why. Is she alright?" Alice asked, panicked, as she revealed Carlisle's medical bag.

"She needs food," Edward answered.

Immediately, Carlisle pulled out an IV kit.

"We should just start with glucose," Edward instructed.

Alice handed him a needle connected to an IV bag and got to work on hanging the bag on the bedpost.

The girl's eyes were slowly opening and closing, but not by very much. But she weakly whimpered when Edward poked the needle into her arm. Edward taped it into place, and resisted the urge to trace her forearm with his ice-cold fingers.

"Where did you find her?" Carlisle asked.

"I was trying to get away from the screaming, and heard her heartbeat," Edward explained, not taking his eyes off of her. "I think she's a slave," saying those words made venom pool in Edward's mouth.

Suddenly, the girl completely opened her eyes. And Edward lost himself. She had the most beautiful chocolate brown eyes. The rest of the world melted away. She was alive. She was moving. She was crying.

Carlisle was suddenly beside Edward, pulling the girl's free hand away from the needle she was pathetically but desperately trying to rip out.

"Shh, Shh. It's alright. It's medicine, it's going to make you better," Carlisle whispered to her.

She whined, "No, no," even Edward's vampire ears could barely hear her weak pleas.

"No, no, no, no, no. Not better, not better, dead. Make me dead."

Her words made Edward want to die too. The most beautiful thing he had ever seen was begging for death.

Carlisle was able to somehow ignore her pleas, and continue.

"What's your name?" he asked softly.

She took in a weak breath, "Bella," she said quietly.

"Bella," Edward breathed without being able to stop himself.

She looked at him. Her chocolate orbs captured him and did not look away. She was the most bittersweet thing Edward had ever seen. Her eyes were so beautiful, but so full of pain.

"No more," she whimpered, "Nomorenomorenomore dead dead dead"

Moving very carefully, Edward took Bella's face in his hands, he stroked her cheek lightly with his thumb.

"Bella," he whispered her beautiful name, "No one is going to hurt you anymore. I promise, I'm going to take you away from here. I'll make you safe."

"Edward," Carlisle scolded, "Don't give the poor girl false hope."

"I'm not giving her false hope, father," Edward shot back, "We can't just leave her here."

"We can't," Alice chimed in, "Edward's right. She's important, if we leave her she'll die."

"Die, die, die," the girl repeated childishly, lost in her own world.

"I'll fight to get her out of here Carlisle," Edward promised, "If you won't help me I'll find another way."

Carlisle was silent for a long while. Edward looked back at Bella. Her eyes were closed and her body was shaking with sobs that she didn't have the energy to let out. He pulled the blankets further over her body.

"Alright," Carlisle finally said, "I know what we can do. But we have to leave now. Alice tell everyone what's going on and that we need to get ready to leave."

Alice was out the door in the next moment.

"Edward, put a shirt on and pack your suitcase," Carlisle instructed.

Edward pulled one of his shirts off the pile of cloth he'd thrown onto Bella.

"I burned everything," Edward said.

Carlisle sighed.

"Alright then, just wrap her in a blanket and take her with us. We're leaving."

Edward did as he was told. Bella was barely conscious anymore, but she burrowed herself deeper into Edward's arms. And Edward was relieved to feel the warmth of her blood. Carlisle held the IV bag above her head and led Edward out of the room, where the rest of the family was waiting.

Edward was immediately assaulted with the various thoughts of pity. Esme's heart was breaking, anger was boiling in Emmett, and even Rosalie felt sorry for Bella, despite her irritation at the thought of helping a human.

"What do we do now?" Alice asked.

"We say goodbye," Carlisle answered, handing the IV bag to Alice and leading his family towards the feeding room. When they arrived, Aro greeted them joyously.

"Carlisle! My friend! We were just about to have dinner, have you decided to join us?"

"The opposite, I'm afraid. Jasper is having a more difficult time dealing with the emotions of your meals. We need to get him home quickly before he has to endure another dinner. I'm terribly sorry for leaving earlier than expected," Carlisle answered calmly.

"Oh how tragic! Must you leave?" Aro asked.

"Yes, I'm afraid," Carlisle answered, seeming oblivious to the fact that Bella's weak heartbeat was starting to beat too fast. Edward could feel her shaking in his arms.

"I see your Edward has indeed found interest in one of our slaves," Caius said, and Edward's heart dropped.

"Yes, her name is Bella, I believe," Carlisle answered, still maintaining his unnatural calm. Only Edward and Jasper could sense the disgust and fear Carlisle was hiding so well.

"Ah, Isabella," Aro said with approval, "Yes, she is one of our favourites. Edward obviously has good taste. Have you tasted her Edward? Her blood truly is something unique."

Edward held back a heave of disgust and knelt his head into Bella's hair. Even though she was unresponsive, save for her continued shaking, breathing in the freesia scent of her hair, buried deep beneath the scent of dirt and grime, calmed him.

"No I haven't," he answered.

"Edward has actually become quite attached to Bella," Carlisle said abruptly, "He desperately doesn't want to part with her, and can't see a reason why he should have to."

Aro laughed, "You can't be requesting that we simply hand over one of our best slaves as a gift!"

"Not as a gift, Aro," Carlisle said smugly, "Must I remind of that favour you owe me from 1782?"

A look of shock crossed Aro's face, "You wouldn't," he said, sounding threatened.

"I would and I will. Unless you leave us in peace, with the girl," Carlisle said. His confidence was in full swing, Edward could tell. Aro, however, was suddenly becoming panicked.

"Very well," he said, "Take her and have an enjoyable trip home."

"Thank you," said Carlisle.

Edward was already walking swiftly towards the door. Alice was running to keep up and keep the IV bag close to the precious bundle nestled in Edward's arms.

Thankfully it was nighttime, and the family had no trouble getting to the airport and onto one of the Volturri's private jets. Edward regretfully let go of Bella to lie her across two seats and cover her with blankets, but he wouldn't leave her side. She spent a few more hours floating in her semi-conscious state, before suddenly looking directly into Edward's eyes. She darted them away quickly, and her heartbeat picked up rapidly.

"It's okay," Edward soothed to her, "No one is going to hurt you anymore. You. Are. Safe. Bella."

Silence passed, Bella looked hesitantly into his eyes, though in a way that Edward couldn't tell if she was actually seeing him.

"My name is Edward," he whispered as Bella's eyes closed into a deep sleep.

_She loves you, Edward. _Alice thought. _She doesn't know it yet, but she loves you. You're her savoir. She's going to love us all, but she already loves you the most. She's going to trust you to keep her safe, and you'd better. Her future is foggy for some reason, but you're in it, and she'll want you to be in it._

Edward smiled. She was going to get better, and he was going to take care of her. She was going to love him. He already loved her so much. He didn't know why, but he knew this was love, and he would do whatever he had to protect her. He swore in that moment that no one would ever touch her again.

When the plane landed in Seattle, Edward was elated to have a reason to carry her again. He held her close and knelt his head into her hair, breathed in her scent as he walked to the car. She was safe now, a far distance from her tormentors. Now she was just hurting. So much. She was his, his responsibility to make better. And he was nothing but willing to take on the challenge. She was more than worth it.

"She can sleep in our bed," Alice said when they arrived at the house, "Edward should stay with her. She feels safest with him."

"Alright," Carlisle said, "But perhaps Alice could get her into some clothes first?" _I want to talk with you, Edward._

Edward nodded, "Fine."

Esme walked up to Edward who, regretfully, shifted the beautiful girl into his mother's arms. Esme held Bella like a baby as she carried the sleeping girl into Alice's room, Alice followed closely behind, Rosalie did not.

Carlisle grabbed Edward's arm and directed him into the living room. The rest of the family, save for Alice and Esme followed.

"I can't believe you went along with this Carlisle."

"Rose, be a little more empathetic," Emmett scolded his wife.

"It's not fair that we have to all risk angering the Volturri just because Edward suddenly feels sympathy for one of their whores," Rosalie snarled, before her body went from standing in the middle of the room to cracked through the coffee table in a sudden force, Edward was on top of her.

"DON'T CALL HER THAT!" Edward screamed as his father and brothers pulled him away from his sister.

"Edward, calm down!" Carlisle warned. Edward stood and his chest rose and fell rapidly as he watched Emmett calm his stricken wife.

"You saw her. She wasn't their by choice. They tortured her and left her alone in that cold room to die," Edward snarled at his sister.

"She knows that," Emmett said, obviously unhappy with the way Rosalie had acted.

"So what do we do now?" Jasper asked.

"It's obvious," said Rose, "Edward and Carlisle can nurse her back to health, and then we'll dump her with social services."

"I doubt that'll happen," Alice's voice chimed in. Everyone stared. "She's a part of our future, whether we like it or not. The second Edward to decided to save her, her future became ours."

Rosalie huffed.

"It's blurry," Alice said, "But for now, I think we should just focus on getting her feeling better. We've got the IV bag hooked up, and she's sleeping now. Edward, I'll let you know when she's about to wake up. You're probably the first person she should see."

"I think I'll go see her now, actually," said Edward, "If you think that's a good idea."

"That's a great idea, Edward," Alice responded, "Esme and I are going to go buy some food for her, anyone wanna join us?"

So the family slipped away, Esme, Alice, and Jasper disappeared out the front door. Carlisle went to his study and brush up on his psychology. Emmett followed his fuming Rose into their room, where she made a show of slamming the door closed, the fact that she didn't break the hinges was a dead giveaway that she knew she was overreacting. Despite his eagerness, Edward found himself taking his time upon entering Alice and Jasper's room. He thanked heaven that he didn't need to breathe, he couldn't bring himself to do it when he saw her.

She looked a little better. Moonlight spilt through the window and onto her angelic sleeping form. Skin was still pulled tight across her bones, but there was a little more colour to her cheeks. She looked warmer, and resting. It was obvious she wouldn't be waking up anytime soon, she was deep in sleep. Edward suspected, with a heavy heart, that this was the first time in a long time she'd been able to sleep in a warm bed.

Edward found a chair across the room, and sat. As he listened to her steady breathing and the strong heartbeat that had suddenly become his whole world, he became dimly aware of the sounds of his family. Carlisle turning pages in his study, Emmett was speaking quietly to Rose ("You will be nice to her."), and Alice and Jasper and Esme coming into the house from their midnight grocery run. The entire family was changing, adjusting to make room in their tiny circle, all for this girl, this small, fragile creature whom seemed too weak to even notice that she had escaped.


End file.
